“Can you see in the dark?”

“Ooh, feisty. Also, you’re cute when you’re angry. You really shouldn’t have reacted like that around me.”

“Why?”

“You’ll see.”

“I—I don’t think I want to?”

Stella shot her another quick smile and turned around, facing Nicole, who stood right behind them.

“I’m just glad it’s warm in here. I thought California was supposed to be hot,” Harlow said, unzipping her jacket.

“California has three seasons,” Nicole said. “Winter, spring, and fire.”

“Where do you think Olive went?” Alex asked. He let go of Luna’s hand and stood behind her, close enough for his chin to bump the top of her head. She looked up at him, tilting her head to the side, but her hopefully reassuring smile went unnoticed. He scanned the room, frowning as he tried to see what lay ahead.

The front door slammed shut, plunging them into darkness.

Someone screamed, shrill and horrified, and Luna whipped around toward the sound. Instinctively, she reached behind her, grabbing Alex’s jacket to keep him close. The hairs on the back of her neck prickled. Her heart beat in her throat. She took a quick hit of her scarf and pressed in close to Alex.

From somewhere in the dark, a voice mocked them. “Oh, come on now. What are you all so scared of?” His voice didn’t echo or carry, but somehow came from everywhere, surrounding them, making him impossible to find.

Luna swallowed hard at the same moment Harlow gasped and whispered, “He’s here too?”

The voice continued, “Jewel would at least give you time to adjust to your new surroundings.”

And then, there was light—from dim to full power in a handful of agonizing moments.

If Alex hadn’t been in her way, Luna probably would have turned in a full circle, jaw completely unhinged. Making the leap from online pictures to real life was almost too much for her brain to handle. The double staircase. The massive framed portraits. The marble floor gleaming with the reflection of golden chandeliers hanging in the domed entryway. The vases, verified by Goldspiracy to each be worth more than a new car, casually hanging out on top of polished black round tables with elaborate bouquets of white flowers inside.

Luna had truly made it to the inside of Jewel’s house.

Her soul would make a break for it any second.

“Oh my God.” Harlow’s whisper trembled with excitement for a very different reason.

Ethan stood against the front door, hands behind his back, a vision in a royal-blue suit with a shimmering gold tie and a wreath of gold leaves nestled in his short, dark brown curly hair. Four thin gold lines had been painted on his left cheek, standing out against his entirely freckled face.